In the final series of shots I moved away from a high-key to a low-key style. In these shots I did little manipulation, if any, of the colour saturation and contrast, and rather worked more with vignetting to offset the model from the background and embolden the low-key effect.
Again I shot wide open with my 50mm lens, however as these were low-key shots I was able to drop the ISO down and in some cases bump up the shutter speed a notch. Just as an aside, longer lenses are usually considered best for model shoots (e.g., 90mm) as they are said to provide a more pleasing image; less distortion. I chose the 50mm for two reasons: [1] so I could get as shallow a depth of field as possible (my 90mm is an f/2.8) and [2] to be able to shoot 2.5 stops faster, thus with lower ISO and faster shutter speed.
In the shot below, you can see my reflection in the mirror in the background, off to the right of the model. I was wearing a red shirt. I liked the injection of red and yellow into the picture.
Leave a Reply